netrashetty
Netra Shetty
Ecolab, Inc. (NYSE: ECL; known as Economics Laboratory prior to 1986)[1] is a St. Paul, Minnesota based sanitation supply company founded in 1923.
The company provides sanitation and pest control supplies, foodservice equipment repair and parts, food safety services and consulting to restaurants, hospitals, food and beverage plants, laundries, schools, retail and commercial properties.[2] With sales of $5.5 billion and more than 26,000 sales-and-service associates, Ecolab Inc. is the global leader[3] in cleaning, sanitizing, pest elimination services, food safety and infection prevention products and services. Ecolab delivers comprehensive programs and services to foodservice, food and beverage processing, healthcare, and hospitality markets in more than 170 countries.
Ecolab sells chemical products used by beef and poultry processors to reduce pathogens, such as E. coli and salmonella, on uncooked beef and poultry.[4]
A basic role for a marketing researcher is that of intermediary between the producer of a product and the marketplace. The marketing researcher facilitates the flow of information from the market or customer to the producer of the good or service.
Such a situation, with three major players—the producer, the customer and the market researcher—often sets the stage for conflicts of interest which, as Plato noted, can give rise to ethical problems. Given the inevitability of ethical dilemmas in marketing research, well-established ethical guidelines are critical for their resolution.
In this article, we identify resources for ethical decision making in marketing research in three key areas where problems often arise:
In the relationship between the researcher and the client
Between the researcher and the research subject
Between the researcher and the marketing research industry
Situation 1: After you make a brilliant final presentation on a business-to-business market research study, your client thanks you and then asks for the list of companies that responded to the survey, along with their survey responses, which could indicate whether they were currently in the market for the client's services. What is your response?
In my 20 years as a marketing researcher, this is the most common ethical dilemma I have encountered and a classic example of conflicting interests leading to ethical problems.
When collecting data, I pledge that individual confidentiality will be maintained, personal information won't be used for other purposes, and responses will be combined with those of other respondents so that individuals can't be identified.
My clients, however, sometimes have an "Aha!" experience during presentations of research findings. They suddenly realize that in addition to a market profile the research process has generated a list of "warm" or qualified leads for further marketing or sales efforts. From their perspective, they paid for the study and so "own" both the results and the subject-specific information.
The Council of American Survey Research Organizations (CASRO), a national trade association of commercial survey research companies in the US, sets clear, unambiguous guidelines for such situations in its Code of Standards and Ethics for Survey Research.
In fact, respondent confidentiality is the first topic covered. The standard is straightforward: while there are sometimes legitimate reasons to disclose a minimal amount of "respondent-identifiable" information to the client (for survey validation purposes or additional analyses), the information cannot be used for individual marketing efforts or to take any action toward an individual respondent as a result of his or her participation in the survey.
Internationally, the guidelines are even stricter. The ICC/ESOMAR International Code of Marketing and Social Research Practice requires not just respondent confidentiality but anonymity. Any deviation from anonymity requires written permission from the respondent.
The Code of Professional Ethics and Practices of the American Association for Public Opinion Research requires that researchers "shall hold as privileged and confidential all information that might identify a respondent with his or her responses."
The use of respondent information for non-research purposes (such as that described in the situation above) can only take place if the respondents specifically grant permission to do so.
So, returning to our client hungry for warm leads, how do you respond?
Situation 2: Despite your best efforts, you are unable to shorten a personal interview questionnaire to less than 30 minutes in order to ask all the questions needed to address your client's research objectives. You know that most of your subjects won't participate if you are honest with them about the time commitment. Your boss suggests that you simply state the survey will "only take a few minutes." Do you take this advice and hope that once the interviews begin people will be reluctant to stop?
CASRO places the responsibility on the researcher for "weighing the research need against the length of the interview" and specifically states that potential research subjects "must not be enticed into an interview by a misrepresentation of the length of the interview."
ESOMAR guidelines similarly prohibit either researchers or interviewers from knowingly misleading potential respondents about the length of an interview in order to gain cooperation. The Marketing Research Association (MRA) has Recommended Best Business Practices for Opinion and Marketing Research, which notes that respondents should not be misled regarding the length of the interview.
Returning to the situation with your boss, how do you respond to the "suggestion" that you tell potential respondents that your survey will take "a few minutes" rather than saying the interview will last approximately 30 minutes?
Situation 3: You are in a kick-off meeting with a new client for your marketing research services. During your discussion, she shows you a previously commissioned research study from another marketing research provider. You note that the research design—a qualitative study—was completely inappropriate for the research purpose—a quantitative estimate of market potential. Your potential client states that she "really liked" the previous study and asks if you can replicate it in another product category. It is clear that if you say no, she will go back to the original provider. How do you respond?
Professionalism and fairness are a hallmark of all of the ethical codes and standards we have discussed. The American Marketing Association (AMA) Code of Ethics warns against taking advantage of situations in such a way that "unfairly deprives or damages the organization of others." The ICC/ESOMAR International Code of Marketing and Social Research Practice stipulates that researchers "must not unjustifiably criticize or disparage other Researchers."
More to the point, however, is the AAPOR Code of Professional Ethics and Practices, which states: "We shall not knowingly make interpretations of research results, nor shall we tacitly permit interpretations that are inconsistent with the data available."
What is your ethical responsibility when the sale is contingent on doing something you know to be wrong?
Although these situations have been described in terms of marketing research practice, the essential ethical questions are really very simple:
Situation 1: Would you go back on your word and betray the trust that others have placed in you?
Situation 2: Would you lie to get others to cooperate with you?
So far, I have avoided giving answers to the proposed situations other than to cite marketing research industry codes and standards. That is because ethical decision making is personal. Each of us must make tough ethical decisions alone, but it can help greatly when there are established guidelines.
Here are three general observations that might suggest how I would address the ethical challenges presented:
If Plato was right that ethical problems spring from a conflict of interests, you should clearly lay out your personal perspective sooner rather than later. My generalized response to the first situation is to initially provide the client with a hardcopy of the Code of Ethics under which I operate, emphasizing those issues important to the particular project. I make certain that clients know what to expect from me and what the final deliverables will include. And—most importantly—I continue to discuss and manage those expectations throughout the entire project.
People tend to lie when they think someone else cannot handle the truth. In the second situation, I have found that if you can honestly persuade the potential respondent that both the research and their participation are important, you can talk to them indefinitely.
Marketing research is an art, not a science. There is no single best solution to any research situation, and researchers should avoid a rush to judgment situations like the third. And rather than criticize another's work, it is best to simply state your own position or approach as articulately and compellingly as possible.
According to the American Marketing Association, marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analyzing of data about problems relating to the marketing of goods and services.
Every small business owner-manager must ask the following questions to devise effective marketing strategies:
Who are my customers and potential customers?
What kind of people are they?
Where do they live?
Can and will they buy?
Am I offering the kinds of goods or services they want — at the best place, at the best time and in the right amounts?
Are my prices consistent with what buyers view as the product's value?
Are my promotional programs working?
What do customers think of my business?
How does my business compare with my competitors?
Marketing research is not a perfect science. It deals with people and their constantly changing feelings and behaviors, which are influenced by countless subjective factors. To conduct marketing research you must gather facts and opinions in an orderly, objective way to find out what people want to buy, not just what you want to sell them.
Why do it?
It is impossible to sell products or services that customers do not want. Learning what customers want, and how to present it attractively, drives the need for marketing research. Small business has an edge over larger concerns in this regard. Large businesses must hire experts to study the mass market, while small-scale entrepreneurs are close to their customers and can learn much more quickly about their buying habits. Small business owners have a sense their customers' needs from years of experience, but this informal information may not be timely or relevant to the current market.
Marketing research focuses and organizes marketing information. It ensures that such information is timely and permits entrepreneurs to:
Reduce business risks
Spot current and upcoming problems in the current market
Identify sales opportunities
Develop plans of action
How to do it
Without being aware of it, most business owners do market research every day. Analyzing returned items, asking former customers why they've switched, and looking at competitor's prices are all examples of such research. Formal marketing research simply makes this familiar process orderly. It provides a framework to organize market information.
Market Research — The Process
Step One: Define Marketing Problems and Opportunities
Step Two: Set Objectives, Budget, and Timetables
Step Three: Select Research Types, Methods, and Techniques
Step Four: Design Research Instruments
Step Five: Collect Data
Step Six: Organize and Analyze the Data
Step Seven: Present and Use Market Research Findings
Define the Problem or Opportunity
The first step of the research process, defining the problem or opportunity, is often overlooked — but it is crucial. The root cause of the problem is harder to identify than its obvious manifestations; for example, a decline in sales is a problem, but its underlying cause is what must be corrected. To define the problem, list every factor that may have influenced it, then eliminate any that cannot be measured. Examine this list while conducting research to see if any factors ought to be added, but don't let it unduly influence data collection.
Assess Available Information
Assess the information that is immediately available. It may be that current knowledge supports one or more hypotheses, and solutions to the problem may become obvious through the process of defining it. Weigh the cost of gathering more information against its potential usefulness.
Gather Additional Information
Before considering surveys or field experiments, look at currently held information: sales records, complaints, receipts, and any other records that can show where customers live and work, and how and what they buy. One small business owner found that addresses on cash receipts allowed him to pinpoint customers in his market area.
The company provides sanitation and pest control supplies, foodservice equipment repair and parts, food safety services and consulting to restaurants, hospitals, food and beverage plants, laundries, schools, retail and commercial properties.[2] With sales of $5.5 billion and more than 26,000 sales-and-service associates, Ecolab Inc. is the global leader[3] in cleaning, sanitizing, pest elimination services, food safety and infection prevention products and services. Ecolab delivers comprehensive programs and services to foodservice, food and beverage processing, healthcare, and hospitality markets in more than 170 countries.
Ecolab sells chemical products used by beef and poultry processors to reduce pathogens, such as E. coli and salmonella, on uncooked beef and poultry.[4]
A basic role for a marketing researcher is that of intermediary between the producer of a product and the marketplace. The marketing researcher facilitates the flow of information from the market or customer to the producer of the good or service.
Such a situation, with three major players—the producer, the customer and the market researcher—often sets the stage for conflicts of interest which, as Plato noted, can give rise to ethical problems. Given the inevitability of ethical dilemmas in marketing research, well-established ethical guidelines are critical for their resolution.
In this article, we identify resources for ethical decision making in marketing research in three key areas where problems often arise:
In the relationship between the researcher and the client
Between the researcher and the research subject
Between the researcher and the marketing research industry
Situation 1: After you make a brilliant final presentation on a business-to-business market research study, your client thanks you and then asks for the list of companies that responded to the survey, along with their survey responses, which could indicate whether they were currently in the market for the client's services. What is your response?
In my 20 years as a marketing researcher, this is the most common ethical dilemma I have encountered and a classic example of conflicting interests leading to ethical problems.
When collecting data, I pledge that individual confidentiality will be maintained, personal information won't be used for other purposes, and responses will be combined with those of other respondents so that individuals can't be identified.
My clients, however, sometimes have an "Aha!" experience during presentations of research findings. They suddenly realize that in addition to a market profile the research process has generated a list of "warm" or qualified leads for further marketing or sales efforts. From their perspective, they paid for the study and so "own" both the results and the subject-specific information.
The Council of American Survey Research Organizations (CASRO), a national trade association of commercial survey research companies in the US, sets clear, unambiguous guidelines for such situations in its Code of Standards and Ethics for Survey Research.
In fact, respondent confidentiality is the first topic covered. The standard is straightforward: while there are sometimes legitimate reasons to disclose a minimal amount of "respondent-identifiable" information to the client (for survey validation purposes or additional analyses), the information cannot be used for individual marketing efforts or to take any action toward an individual respondent as a result of his or her participation in the survey.
Internationally, the guidelines are even stricter. The ICC/ESOMAR International Code of Marketing and Social Research Practice requires not just respondent confidentiality but anonymity. Any deviation from anonymity requires written permission from the respondent.
The Code of Professional Ethics and Practices of the American Association for Public Opinion Research requires that researchers "shall hold as privileged and confidential all information that might identify a respondent with his or her responses."
The use of respondent information for non-research purposes (such as that described in the situation above) can only take place if the respondents specifically grant permission to do so.
So, returning to our client hungry for warm leads, how do you respond?
Situation 2: Despite your best efforts, you are unable to shorten a personal interview questionnaire to less than 30 minutes in order to ask all the questions needed to address your client's research objectives. You know that most of your subjects won't participate if you are honest with them about the time commitment. Your boss suggests that you simply state the survey will "only take a few minutes." Do you take this advice and hope that once the interviews begin people will be reluctant to stop?
CASRO places the responsibility on the researcher for "weighing the research need against the length of the interview" and specifically states that potential research subjects "must not be enticed into an interview by a misrepresentation of the length of the interview."
ESOMAR guidelines similarly prohibit either researchers or interviewers from knowingly misleading potential respondents about the length of an interview in order to gain cooperation. The Marketing Research Association (MRA) has Recommended Best Business Practices for Opinion and Marketing Research, which notes that respondents should not be misled regarding the length of the interview.
Returning to the situation with your boss, how do you respond to the "suggestion" that you tell potential respondents that your survey will take "a few minutes" rather than saying the interview will last approximately 30 minutes?
Situation 3: You are in a kick-off meeting with a new client for your marketing research services. During your discussion, she shows you a previously commissioned research study from another marketing research provider. You note that the research design—a qualitative study—was completely inappropriate for the research purpose—a quantitative estimate of market potential. Your potential client states that she "really liked" the previous study and asks if you can replicate it in another product category. It is clear that if you say no, she will go back to the original provider. How do you respond?
Professionalism and fairness are a hallmark of all of the ethical codes and standards we have discussed. The American Marketing Association (AMA) Code of Ethics warns against taking advantage of situations in such a way that "unfairly deprives or damages the organization of others." The ICC/ESOMAR International Code of Marketing and Social Research Practice stipulates that researchers "must not unjustifiably criticize or disparage other Researchers."
More to the point, however, is the AAPOR Code of Professional Ethics and Practices, which states: "We shall not knowingly make interpretations of research results, nor shall we tacitly permit interpretations that are inconsistent with the data available."
What is your ethical responsibility when the sale is contingent on doing something you know to be wrong?
Although these situations have been described in terms of marketing research practice, the essential ethical questions are really very simple:
Situation 1: Would you go back on your word and betray the trust that others have placed in you?
Situation 2: Would you lie to get others to cooperate with you?
So far, I have avoided giving answers to the proposed situations other than to cite marketing research industry codes and standards. That is because ethical decision making is personal. Each of us must make tough ethical decisions alone, but it can help greatly when there are established guidelines.
Here are three general observations that might suggest how I would address the ethical challenges presented:
If Plato was right that ethical problems spring from a conflict of interests, you should clearly lay out your personal perspective sooner rather than later. My generalized response to the first situation is to initially provide the client with a hardcopy of the Code of Ethics under which I operate, emphasizing those issues important to the particular project. I make certain that clients know what to expect from me and what the final deliverables will include. And—most importantly—I continue to discuss and manage those expectations throughout the entire project.
People tend to lie when they think someone else cannot handle the truth. In the second situation, I have found that if you can honestly persuade the potential respondent that both the research and their participation are important, you can talk to them indefinitely.
Marketing research is an art, not a science. There is no single best solution to any research situation, and researchers should avoid a rush to judgment situations like the third. And rather than criticize another's work, it is best to simply state your own position or approach as articulately and compellingly as possible.
According to the American Marketing Association, marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analyzing of data about problems relating to the marketing of goods and services.
Every small business owner-manager must ask the following questions to devise effective marketing strategies:
Who are my customers and potential customers?
What kind of people are they?
Where do they live?
Can and will they buy?
Am I offering the kinds of goods or services they want — at the best place, at the best time and in the right amounts?
Are my prices consistent with what buyers view as the product's value?
Are my promotional programs working?
What do customers think of my business?
How does my business compare with my competitors?
Marketing research is not a perfect science. It deals with people and their constantly changing feelings and behaviors, which are influenced by countless subjective factors. To conduct marketing research you must gather facts and opinions in an orderly, objective way to find out what people want to buy, not just what you want to sell them.
Why do it?
It is impossible to sell products or services that customers do not want. Learning what customers want, and how to present it attractively, drives the need for marketing research. Small business has an edge over larger concerns in this regard. Large businesses must hire experts to study the mass market, while small-scale entrepreneurs are close to their customers and can learn much more quickly about their buying habits. Small business owners have a sense their customers' needs from years of experience, but this informal information may not be timely or relevant to the current market.
Marketing research focuses and organizes marketing information. It ensures that such information is timely and permits entrepreneurs to:
Reduce business risks
Spot current and upcoming problems in the current market
Identify sales opportunities
Develop plans of action
How to do it
Without being aware of it, most business owners do market research every day. Analyzing returned items, asking former customers why they've switched, and looking at competitor's prices are all examples of such research. Formal marketing research simply makes this familiar process orderly. It provides a framework to organize market information.
Market Research — The Process
Step One: Define Marketing Problems and Opportunities
Step Two: Set Objectives, Budget, and Timetables
Step Three: Select Research Types, Methods, and Techniques
Step Four: Design Research Instruments
Step Five: Collect Data
Step Six: Organize and Analyze the Data
Step Seven: Present and Use Market Research Findings
Define the Problem or Opportunity
The first step of the research process, defining the problem or opportunity, is often overlooked — but it is crucial. The root cause of the problem is harder to identify than its obvious manifestations; for example, a decline in sales is a problem, but its underlying cause is what must be corrected. To define the problem, list every factor that may have influenced it, then eliminate any that cannot be measured. Examine this list while conducting research to see if any factors ought to be added, but don't let it unduly influence data collection.
Assess Available Information
Assess the information that is immediately available. It may be that current knowledge supports one or more hypotheses, and solutions to the problem may become obvious through the process of defining it. Weigh the cost of gathering more information against its potential usefulness.
Gather Additional Information
Before considering surveys or field experiments, look at currently held information: sales records, complaints, receipts, and any other records that can show where customers live and work, and how and what they buy. One small business owner found that addresses on cash receipts allowed him to pinpoint customers in his market area.
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